About East Greenwich

East Greenwich is an affluent town in the county seat of Kent County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 13,111 as of 2016.

East Greenwich is the wealthiest municipality within the state of Rhode Island. Formed as Greenwich in 1677, it was named for Greenwich, England. It was renamed Dedford in 1686 but reverted to its original name in 1689. It is the 8th oldest town in Rhode Island.

In 1741, the more rural western three-quarters of the town was set off as West Greenwich, the remaining quarter of it thenceforth being called East Greenwich. Until 1854, it was one of the five state capitals for Rhode Island. The General Assembly, when meeting in East Greenwich, used the local courthouse, which is today the town hall.

East Greenwich Village is located in the northeastern part of the town and extends north about 1.5 km into the town of Warwick, Rhode Island. The town is now known for its waterfront and downtown business district.

The town has a total area of 16.71 square miles of which, 16.58 square miles is land and 0.14 square miles is water. Division Street roughly forms the border with the town of Warwick to the north, west until Route 2. Greenwich Cove, an arm of the Greenwich Bay and mouth of the Maskerchugg River, is the eastern most part of the town. Four hills roll progressively up to the border of West Greenwich, and Frenchtown Road is a rough reference to the boundary of North Kingstown.

East Greenwich is also the birthplace of the Navy.